Set Ablaze
by greetingsfrommaars
Summary: A series of short scenes written for characters' birthdays. Most recently on "Set Ablaze": Sometimes, the quest for aesthetic beauty can outweigh even tennis. Yukimura Seiichi arrives late to practice after a Beautification Committee consultation...
1. January 2 - Dan Taiichi

_This is the first in a series of random little scenes written for various characters' birthdays. It'll run alongside some others I've started for _Naruto _and _Bleach_... not sure what else I want to try yet. We'll see._

* * *

><p><strong>January 2 - Dan Taiichi<strong>

The tennis team of Yamabuki Middle School had prepared the very best New Year's party. Indeed, how could they not, with the most attentive data manager directing them?

In the minutes before the moment of truth, we find . . . a scene of frantic scrambling.

"No! No, not there! Buchou!"

"Sorry, sorry…"

"Muromachi-senpai! What are you _doing_?!"

"…Putting the food on the table?"

"No, not yet! Wait until—"

The team watched in silent awe as Dan reached levels of nitpickiness they had never seen before. They had thought that a simple celebration would be enough. Ha! The attention to detail of a first-year data player knew no bounds.

The table decorations were crooked. One of the chairs had a minute scratch at the very bottom. The walls were too bland and needed more color—but _no, senpai, don't waste the streamers!_ What if there wasn't enough food? What would they do if they had too much food? What if the guests hated the party?!

Something smacked the side of Dan's head and bounced on the table. He flinched, eyeing the tennis ball that now rolled innocently across the floor.

"Slow down, runt. You're giving everyone whiplash." Akutsu spoke without sparing Dan a glance, tossing another ball with one hand as he slouched in an armchair in the corner.

"Akutsu-senpai—"

"No one's going to die if the party's bad, idiot. There's nothing you can do at this point."

"But what if they don't like the food?"

"Shut up or I'm serving this ball into the—"

"Akutsu-senpai! Don't you dare!"

-mm-

_Notes: For some reason, I always forget whether Dan is his given name or his family name. I think it's his family name..._

_In my mind, Dan's personality as a data player means that he's the type of person who feels the need to check every tiny detail before going out and doing something. In canon, this came up with him researching other players meticulously, but I figured that this personality trait could apply to a New Year's celebration too. Once I had that idea, I figured that Akutsu would be the obvious one to make Dan slow down and stop freaking out, in the most forceful way possible, of course._

_Thank you for reading! If anyone has any alternate title suggestions, I would truly appreciate it. I've been undeniably lazy with all my birthday series names..._

_Next up is Kabaji Munehiro._


	2. January 3 - Kabaji Munehiro

**January 3 - Kabaji Munehiro**

Rolls of grip tape, pliable to the touch.

A row of pristine new rackets.

Baskets of tennis balls in their untouched, pure fuzz.

In short, he had found an oasis within the city chaos.

Kabaji Munehiro stood in the middle of the tennis section of his favorite sports store.

Now that he was here, the most important part of his journey into inner Tokyo could begin. It was time to decide what to buy . . . Since it was Munehiro's birthday, it would be alright to spend a bit on some supplies. He examined a rack of tennis shoes thoughtfully, before returning to the shelf with tennis rackets. Perhaps he could find a new racket to withstand some of his more powerful shots . . . He paused.

An insistent voice with a certain commanding tone reached his ears from elsewhere in the store.

"Be quiet, Gakuto. He certainly does not want a five-tier cake with sparklers on it for his birthday. No, you fool, _you're_ the one who wants a cake! Munehiro-kun never eats sweets. How is that any way to speak to your superior? _You're_ selfish and stingy! Give the phone back to Yuushi, you peon! Listening to your prattle is beneath me!"

A familiar head of silky gray hair made its way through the aisles. Kabaji could practically see the supercilious sneer on his former captain's face as Atobe scolded Mukahi for stealing Oshitari's phone.

_Here comes the King_. Somehow, a small sports store in the city was not among the places Munehiro expected to find Atobe on a weekend.

"Yuushi, I told you, Gakuto must not be allowed to pollute my hearing with such idiotic chatter. Does he ever shut up? Give the man a sedative. Yes, I am aware that you are not a licensed medical professional, but I had such faith in your resourcefulness. This is beside the point. You're supposed to be clever; you tell me—what would make a good birthday present? I know it's Munehiro's birthday today—"

Atobe turned into the tennis section of the humble sports equipment store and found Munehiro.

"… A moment, Yuushi." Atobe put the phone down and stared at Munehiro.

Munehiro stared back.

"Hello, Kabaji-kun. For your information, you obviously have not seen me here, and of course I am not desperately finding you a birthday present at the last minute."

"…"

"Since this is a golden opportunity, what do you think Kabaji-kun would like for his birthday?"

"…"

"If you'll leave my magnificent self to scramble for a gift alone, so be it." Atobe pointed to the area of the store he had come from. "Go find your inner love of baseball or something equally mundane. I have a present to find."

Munehiro ambled away, sighing. _He hasn't changed one whit._

-mm-

_Notes: Honestly, I don't have much of an idea about Kabaji's personality, so I feel like Atobe ended up taking over this scene. Oops._

_I imagine this story taking place after the canon third years have graduated and gone on to high school, which is why Atobe is Kabaji's "former captain" at the moment. That situation will change, methinks, after Kabaji graduates too._

_I think Atobe's part of this_—_searching for the perfect gift_—_was probably inspired by the _Phineas and Ferb _Christmas special I watched recently, though Atobe certainly handles pressure better than Candace (from that show) does._

_Thank you for reading! Next up is Sakuno._


	3. January 14 - Ryuuzaki Sakuno

**January 14 - Ryuuzaki Sakuno**

_Knees bent. Arm swinging back, just so…_

Ryuuzaki Sakuno furrowed her brow in concentration, mentally preparing herself. With a quick exhale, she tossed the ball up into the air and raised her racket to meet it in a graceful arc overhead. She watched her serve soar over the net, across the other side of the court … and into the bushes outside the fence. Her face fell—_missed again_, she thought to herself.

"_Ow!_ What the heck?!" A protesting voice rose from the bushes. As Sakuno watched, the branches and leaves shook before parting to reveal a boy in a plainly colored jacket. A red mark the size of a tennis ball shined from his forehead. He stalked through the entrance to the courts, scowling at the girl who had injured him.

"Intruder!" called Tomoka from the other side of the court. "Who are you, and why is your jacket so horribly unfashionable?"

"I think he's a spy from another school, Tomoka-chan," suggested Sakuno. The boy flinched.

"Shut up! Don't dismiss me so easily, little _girl_—and our team jacket is not unfashionable! The white and blue symbolize our indomitable pride as the regulars of Ginka Junior High tennis!"

"I think you're just copying our school's color scheme, lamebrain spy," mocked Tomoka.

"_Why you—! _You dare insult the colors of the glorious Ginka team!" he snarled back, striding angrily towards the outspoken first year.

Tomoka stood her ground, glaring at him indignantly. "So you're here to spy on our Nationals-ranked team? You don't have half the talent of Ryoma-sama or Tezuka-senpai. Do you think spying will help you any?"

"_Shut up!_" The boy advanced towards her, lifting a hand to grab her arm.

Another tennis ball slammed into his shoulder. He dropped his arm with a yelp.

Coming to stand at the net, Sakuno stared at the intruder steadily, kneading her racket between her hands. She glanced at his shoulder; it had a small bruise, less visible than the one on his head.

_Darn. That shot was weaker than I wanted._

"You should leave now," she told him, ignoring his answering scowl. "I have plenty more balls ready, and if you don't want to get caught in our _game_, I suggest you go away." She indicated the exit plainly, waiting for him to concede.

He threw her a dark look and loped away, muttering to himself.

Sakuno smiled. _One Ginka spy, kicked off the girls' courts, courtesy of Ryuuzaki Sakuno_.

"Uh, Sakuno?" Tomoka called to her friend.

"Yeah?"

"You just pointed him in the direction of the boys' courts… The school's main gate is _that_ way."

_Oops_.

**-mm-**

_Notes: As a disclaimer, my brainpower level is nearly nonexistent at the moment. Blame it on the terrible duo of an English essay and my procrastination skills..._

_For this one, I wanted to write a scene with a strong Sakuno—no pining after Ryoma, or just standing at the sidelines while the boys battle it out on the court. I wanted to give Sakuno a "hero" moment like all those times Ryoma comes to the rescue for random victims of bullying... apparently this eventually translated to violence through the instruments of tennis. Oh dear. Also, apparently I really like using tennis balls to abuse my characters. First Dan, now this Ginka kid…_

_In addition, I have realized that I have difficulties writing angry "bad guys" without including swearing XD My instincts told me to have my Ginka kid swear when he got angry, but my common sense told me to stick to this series's "K" rating._

_Thank you for reading! Next up is Ishida Gin._


	4. January 25 - Ishida Gin

**January 25 - Ishida Gin**

Ishida Gin knelt on the tennis clubroom floor and searched for inner peace.

_Empty your mind. Let all your thoughts fall away, and silence the insistent voices within your head._ _Cease all movement but the constant pulse within your veins._ He folded his hands in front of his lap and prepared to begin a breathing exercise.

_Inhale. One. Two. Three. Four._

_ Exhale. One. Two. Three. Four. Five…_

"Hey, Ishida-senpai!" A small weight crashed into the meditating teenager and bounced off of his solid frame. Recovering rapidly, the freshman hopped to his feet and waved his hands excitedly.

"Ishida-senpai, today's not a day to sit around and do nothing!" Kintarou-kun skipped in circles around his senpai with an eager grin. "We should go somewhere and have fun!"

_Persevering through all interruptions is also a form of demonstrating inner peace. Calm your mind. Weather all storms._

"Senpai, you have a younger brother who plays tennis, right? We should go to your house and find him! Is he big and strong like you? Can he do the Hadokyuu? Is his head as shiny as yours? Do you have any other siblings? You have a little sister, right? Does she like tennis? Has she ever come to see us play? Would she like to join? I'd like to play!" Kintarou-kun prattled on. The breakneck pace of his circling around Ishida matched the speed of his speech.

_Be as an immovable mountain. Rigid, consistent, unwavering…_

"Hey, can we go see Koshimae? I wanna challenge him! His plays are wild! I don't remember where he lives, though. Somewhere with lots of skinny trees and hard courts, right? Koshimae never gets angry even though his senpai always tease him. He's kind of like you! Whoever laughs first wins, right? But Ishida-senpai lets everyone else laugh and just follows along silently! You don't even yell when Konjiki-senpai and Hitouji-senpai put centipedes in your food!" Kintarou-kun's mouth never stopped moving.

_Kintarou-kun will run out of steam eventually. Just bide your time…_

A small hand prodded at his forehead.

"Hey, Ishida-senpai, you in there? You aren't even moving. Are you okay? Should I go get our captain and ask him to save you? I think he's taking a test right now, though! Should I go and ask the other senpai to wake you up instead? Hey, senpai!"

Silently, Ishida Gin stood up from the tennis clubroom floor and resigned himself to another afternoon of babysitting his team's hyperactive secret weapon.

**-mm-**

_Notes: Ishida Gin really does seem like an immovable mountain to me-at least while he appears in the first PoT manga. Of course, once the Goliath-like high-school students come into play in New Prince of Tennis, everyone reaches a new level of implausibility._

_The "breathing exercise" for meditation that I wrote is actually a breathing exercise that I did for flute-playing before... I just figured that it seemed applicable to mediation too. I've never actually meditated myself besides falling half-asleep in PE yoga class, so I'm certainly not knowledgeable in any way concerning meditation._

_Kintarou feels like an all-exclamation-marks kind of guy. Thus, half of his lines end in exclamation points, and the other half in question marks. He's an energetic little bugger._

_Thank you for reading! Next up is Krauser Liliadent (who has such a ridiculous name)._


	5. February 7 - Liliadent Krauser

**February 7 - Liliadent Krauser**

"_My name is Ririadento Kurauza_._ I am a boy._"

He frowned, kneading the pencil between his fingers. What else could he say?

"_I have thirteen years. I do tennis._"

Letting out a frustrated groan, he let the pencil drop to his desk. This exercise was stupid. He already knew who he was, and his teacher already knew that his life involved little outside of tennis. What could either of them gain from his "personal essay"? All he had achieved was to solidify his belief that he had barely any grasp on the Japanese language at all.

Even so, he had to fill this page somehow. What else did he know how to say?

"_I am of Europe. It is cold. I do not like it._"

Even when he arrived in Japan, he still couldn't escape the darned snow, building up everywhere and smothering all the outdoor tennis courts. Remembering it made him grimace and glance out the window with a sour look. His teachers at home had told him to simply go out for a walk and find a community tennis court if he ever felt bored while in Japan, but obviously the winter existed merely to sabotage all his efforts. The snow closed down the outdoor courts, the cold air forced him to stay inside with nothing to do but write stupid essays, and the ice was a menace unlike any other. Just the day before, he had taken a wrong step and landed on his behind, and then the rest of the tennis team had laughed at him.

"_Winter is stupid. Essay is stupid. I don't want to write._"

He stabbed the pencil down upon finishing that line, leaving an angry hole instead of a period to end the sentence. His pencil tip broke, and he scowled at it. Why did the essay have to be so annoying? Why did it have to drag on and on, instead of going by quickly like one of his matches? Tennis always came to an end too fast for him, especially once he brought out his crucifixion style. He huffed impatiently and sharpened his pencil to a wicked point again.

"_Winter is no fun. Essay is no fun. Tennis is. Other persons fall. Not me._"

Ever since he came to Japan, in fact, he had not found a single decent player to challenge him. The experience was supposed to broaden his horizons and introduce him to new styles of tennis, but so far, he had only found amateurs and copycats. He had beaten each opponent soundly, and he would surely do so again each time he attended another tournament with Nagoya.

"_I won. I win. I will win._"

He smirked to himself—his Japanese writing teacher would appreciate the demonstration of his mastery over Japanese verb tenses, at least. Skimming over the scrawled words on his notebook page, he nodded in satisfaction.

"_I finish_. _End_."

**-mm-**

_Notes: I've noticed that the wintry scene that surrounds me has started claiming every one of my recent scenes, too. Ah, winter... it has claimed my soul, and all my writing muses, I guess._

_Inspiration for this scene comes from my own experiences with Spanish homework, when I run out of inane things to say about myself. I tried to mimic the stilted writing of a foreigner in the lines for Liliadent's "essay". All the sentences are also remarkably short and unsophisticated. XD_

_On another note, I also realized just now that Liliadent is the age of a seventh grader according to my local school system. And, darn, I've never met a thirteen-year-old who crucified his opponents for the sake of a game the way Liliadent does... but then, I've never seen a ninth grader who could paralyze people by hitting balls at them, or a high school kid who could shatter a freaking concrete wall with a racket and a ball and one heck of a shot._

_Or maybe my school's tennis team is secretly more terrifying than I thought._

_Thank you for reading, anyway! Next up is Ootori Choutarou._


	6. February 14 - Ootori Choutarou

**February 14 - Ootori Choutarou**

"Oh, yeah, we have someone on our team who's always sent to deal with the girls on Valentine's Day," Oshitari Yuushi explained to his cousin. He transferred the phone to his other ear. "What? No, it's not Kabaji-kun. I know that Kabaji looks like he does all the grunt work for the team, but actually, it's Ootori Choutarou…"

* * *

><p>"<em>Kyaaaaaa<em>! It's perfect!"

"Shh! Calm down. They might hear you!"

"Ah, I can't wait! When are they coming out?"

A murmur of excited whispers and stifled giggles came from outside the tennis club room. From within, the members of the team stood around nervously, unwilling to brave the wild crowd of female classmates beyond the clubroom door. With just one step, they would knew they would find themselves lost in a storm of pink hearts and frantic confessions, bewildered in a world of one-sided romance and obsessive love. What could they do? They were tennis players, not Casanovas. There was nothing they could do.

Finally, Atobe sighed and gave a rapid snap with his fingers. "Ootori!"

The second year stood at attention. "Yes, captain!"

Atobe waved at the door with a dismissive look. "You know what to do. Make it quick."

"Will do, captain." Choutarou strode to the door calmly, as his senpai looked on in awe and Kabaji watched with a blank expression.

A series of high-pitched squeals greeted him when he exited the clubroom. Though he didn't have nearly as many rabid fans as his captain (who attracted loving "subjects" by the dozens with his kingly attitude), Choutarou had a handful of secret admirers of his own because of his caring, respectful demeanor.

Before he could even open his mouth to speak, the girls directly in front of him began to swoon exaggeratedly, giving in to their fantasies of being caught by Ootori Choutarou, the knight in shining armor, when they fell. The girls behind the front row simply appreciated the better view of him, now that those girls in the way were down.

Choutarou cleared his throat. "Thank you all for coming to give us your Valentine's Day chocolates. I'm sure you all chose amazingly delicious sweets for us, even if we don't deserve them."

The crowd of girls cooed dotingly as one. Ootori-kun was so _cute_!

"However, I regretfully inform you that, as a part of our preparations for the upcoming tournament, we will not be eating any sweets and will instead be eating as healthily as possible. Yes, even Mukahi-senpai."

A muted wail came from within the tennis clubroom.

"Because of this, I'm afraid we can't accept your generous gifts. Thank you for your time. Please leave the tennis courts now, because we need to practice."

* * *

><p>"… Yeah, Ootori-kun, because he looks gentle and kind, but shoots straight and fast."<p>

**-mm-**

_Notes: A happy belated Valentine's Day to everyone! Sorry this is a day late._

_This is pretty much what came to my mind immediately when I saw that Choutarou's birthday was Valentine's Day. So, of course, I had fun writing the cliché anime fangirls with no sense of reason or personal privacy. Haha._

_The idea of a fantasy about fainting and being caught by your crush comes from the music video for "I'm Different" by Hi Suhyun (Lee Hi and Suhyun)._

_Thank you for reading! Next up is Fuji Yuuta._


	7. February 18 - Fuji Yuuta

**February 18 - Fuji Yuuta**

"Argh, where is it?" Yuuta dashed around his room frantically, rummaging through his closet and the chaotic layer of clothing on his floor. "I could've sworn that I had it with me yesterday…"

Bunching up each section of clothes in his arms, he dumped the armfuls of clothing on his bed one by one. He found wrinkled pants, rumpled shirts, individual socks missing their partners…

His St. Rudolph Academy uniform jacket was nowhere to be seen.

He could remember wearing it throughout the day before during his classes. After the school day and tennis practice had ended, he had left the dorm to spend the weekend at home. As soon as he stepped through the door, a dizzying storm of familial affection from his mother and sister stopped him in his tracks. Syuusuke had just stood behind them, an enigmatic smile on his face. Yuuta had still had his jacket up till then…

_Syuusuke._

Yuuta whirled around and stormed out of his room. Hearing his angry footfalls descending the stairs, his two older siblings turned away from their idle conversation in the kitchen.

"_Nii-san!_ What have you done with my uniform jacket?" Yuuta accused.

"What are you talking about, Yuuta? I haven't seen it," responded Syuusuke, smiling easily.

"I know you've done something with it. You don't need to mess with me, okay? Where is it?"

"I really haven't seen it, my dear younger brother."

"It seems to me that he really means it, Yuuta. Have you checked the laundry? Perhaps Mother put it there," offered Yumiko from her position by the stove.

"No, she doesn't collect laundry from my room. She said that she didn't want to wade through the ocean of chaos… Nii-san must have done something to it! You're always trying to _toy_ with me somehow! So where is it? Did you draw something stupid on it? Did you mutilate my uniform?!"

Yuuta's phone vibrating in his pocket broke him from his accusations. Muttering angrily, he glanced at the caller ID—"Vice-Captain"—and answered the call.

"Hello?"

"Hey, Yuuta," drawled a bored voice.

"Has Mizuki done something stupid again?" Yuuta glared at his brother as he spoke. _Don't think you're off the hook just because I'm on the phone_.

"No, it's your uniform jacket, you dolt. You left it in the club room, so we grabbed it for you. It's here at the dorm."

"…Oh." Yuuta glanced at his apparently innocent older brother.

Syuusuke smiled.

**-mm-**

_Notes: Yeah, this is pretty much all I came up with for Yuuta XD Sorry for distressing you, Yuuta-kun._

_On a side note, I learned from the Tenipuri wiki that once, Syuusuke and Yuuta got lost in a department store when they were younger because Syuusuke kept forcing Yuuta to try on the clothes. Maybe I should use that for Syuusuke's scene... ha._

_Thank you for reading! Especially, thank you to everyone who has followed/favorited: the freelance dreamer, XxBloodandButterfliesxX, NaoQuitcher, MissE3, and Suzume Suzuki._

_Next up is Fuji Syuusuke (he's a Leap Day baby)._


	8. February 29 - Fuji Syuusuke

**February 29 - Fuji Syuusuke**

"Happy birthday, Yuuta!" cheered the Fuji family, surrounding the birthday boy with warm smiles.

"Thank you very much," he replied, grinning widely.

The remains of a splendid feast lay across the table between them. Tantalizing aromas filled the air from the frenzy of cooking that had taken place earlier in the day. Yuuta would have been tempted to stuff even more food into his mouth if his gut weren't already full to bursting with his favorite foods. As it was, all he needed to do was lean back in his chair and let out a sigh in a single gust of pure satisfaction.

With this birthday, he could now say that he was thirteen years old, satisfied with this school year thus far, and that much closer to becoming a fully mature tennis player. His parents approved of his grades from the most recent term (except for literature, of course, but no one really wanted to confront the abyss of vague metaphors and didactic morals that was literature class). Mizuki-san had introduced an incredible new shot to him—the posture was kind of weird, but the violent spin he could put on the ball was worth it. This evening was just the culmination of a growing trend of happy happenings in his life.

Syuusuke hadn't even tried anything sneaky. Nii-san was just sitting quietly by Yumiko, chatting lightly about something a wonder freshman on his team had been up to recently.

Then, both Yuuta's siblings turned to him, smiling subtly in unison.

"We left your presents on your bed, Yuuta-kun. Go and see!" Yumiko told him, while Syuusuke gestured towards the stairs leading to his room.

"Okay!" Humming lightly to himself, Yuuta left the dining room and disappeared up the stairs.

"He's so cheerful now—I guess the new school is doing him some good," commented Yumiko. "Especially that manager who keeps helping him with his tennis. I know you wanted Yuuta to be at Seigaku with you, but I think it's nice that he's making connections with other people and reaching out for himself."

"Ah, the little chickie is leaving the nest," Syuusuke replied. "He used to be so cute when I could just put him in a set of giraffe pajamas and coo at him. Where has that adorable little tyke gone?"

"He always used to make the oddest faces when you did that, even though he never really refused the pajamas. I remember he used to scrunch up his nose and arch his eyebrows in a completely vexed facial expression when we both cooed at him."

"_Nii-san!_" An indignant cry came from the second upstairs bedroom.

"I imagine that he's making that lovely facial expression right now," suggested Syuusuke. "I do hope we get to see it."

"I'm sure we will," answered Yumiko, when they both heard a hurried set of footsteps descending the stairs.

"Nii-san, I told you I wouldn't wear the monkey-themed ones anymore! I'm not going to look like a preschooler because of you! _Take the gift back!_" Yuuta thrust the offending pair of pajamas in his brother's face, glaring at him vehemently.

"See? Here comes the exasperated facial expression," pointed out Yumiko.

"I chose the gift with the utmost of care, Yuuta-kun. I do hope you enjoyed the message I wrote on the tag for them." Syuusuke ignored the brightly colored bundle of cloth invading his personal space.

"The tag?" Yuuta glanced down at the clothes in his hands.

_I thought this set of pajamas looked perfect for you. These look really comfy. Please wear them around the house when you want to relax, Yumiko-onee-san. Even though it's Yuuta's birthday, you deserve a nice present too. _ _From your brother Syuusuke_

"This… what…" Yuuta balked at the present in his hands, before a deft hand snatched it and whisked it out of his grasp.

"I really appreciate the gift, Syuusuke," said Yumiko, feeling the soft fabric in her hands. "I'm sorry I _misplaced _it among the presents for Yuuta's birthday, but I'm glad we both got to see Yuuta's best affronted facial expression again, aren't you?"

"Of course, nee-san," replied Syuusuke. He smiled at Yuuta. "You'll find _your_ present on your bed, still, Yuuta. Please enjoy it."

"… Right…"'

Yuuta turned on his heel and ran up the stairs, determined to escape the atmosphere of madness that surrounded his older siblings when he could.

**-mm-**

_Notes: Hey, it looks like my scenes are getting longer! This is exciting!_

_Syuusuke and Yumiko just really needed most of another page to mess with Yuuta properly, I'd say. XD For some reason, all the scenes that come to my mind for Syuusuke involve him messing with someone else. For some reason._

_Originally, I was thinking of making the "present" a dress, but then I changed it to kiddie pajamas._

_Thank you for reading! Next up is Kachirou Katou._


	9. March 2 - Kachirou Katou

**March 2 - Kachirou Katou**

"Okay, Team Horio, calling a short meeting before tennis practice starts!" Horio announced.

"Why are we Team Horio? Can't we be Team Seigaku B or something?" questioned Mizuno immediately. "This is for Seigaku, after all…"

"It doesn't matter what we call ourselves. We're supposed to be secretly gathering data for the team, right?" Kachirou spoke up. "Spies don't have team names."

"Shh! Don't shout it out for everyone else to hear!" hissed Mizuno. "We're spying in _secret_!"

All three first-years scanned the surrounding area carefully for potential eavesdroppers. With a top-secret mission such as this, for the sake of Seigaku's boys' tennis team, they could not be negligent. Within a radius of ten meters, they found some members of another club en route to a classroom… an older girl walking by with her eyes fixated on her phone… no one within hearing distance of their meeting place between the azalea bushes.

They let out a sigh of relief in unison.

Kachirou turned to his comrades with a troubled expression. "Guys, are we sure this is a good idea? I don't know if the regulars will really approve of something sneaky like this…"

"If the other schools are doing it too, I say we have the right to see what our regulars are up against," argued Mizuno. "Besides, if we give Inui-senpai good data, maybe he won't try to test out new energy drink formulas on us."

At the thought of even _more_ luridly bright and bubbly concoctions coming from the diabolical hands of Inui-senpai, all three shuddered.

"Let's do it. Even I, with my considerable experience, don't have the guts to deal with Inui-senpai's evilness," insisted Horio. "But Team Horio needs a plan."

Mizuno suddenly sat up with an excited expression. "If we're going to spy for the team… we need spy stuff! You know, watches with laser beams, pens with hidden blades… no, tennis balls secretly packed with explosives!"

"Why would we need those?" Kachirou gave his comrade a questioning look. "And why would we mutilate perfectly good tennis balls like that? And where would we even get them from?"

"We don't need spy gadgets. My expertise will make up for them!" declared Horio, gesturing grandly.

"You have experience spying on people?" Kachirou inquired, looking skeptical.

"Horio-kun, have you been living a secret life in the shadows without telling us?" gasped Mizuno.

"Nah, he's probably just stalking that pretty senpai that he likes," replied Kachirou, waving his hand dismissively.

"Oh, that makes more sense," Mizuno agreed. "Horio-kun, you didn't tell us you were a creeper!"

"_Hey!_ I am not a creeper! I am a veteran tennis player!" spluttered Horio. "Stop _laughing_!"

"Anyway, moving on from Horio's private stalking tendencies—denying it so much makes it look worse, Horio-kun—we should decide where to go. Tennis practice is going to start soon. Which school should we spy on?" Kachirou looked at his comrades expectantly.

"I think we should go check on Ginka," muttered Mizuno. "They forfeited as soon as our match with them started, for no reason. They definitely have something to hide."

"I agree. No honest, respectable tennis player would back out of a match like that," Kachirou responded.

"Alright, so we've decided which school to scout out…" Horio put a hand on his chin in thought. Then an ominous dark shape caught his attention from the corner of his eye.

A dark-haired head, sporting glasses, a tidy Seigaku regular's jacket, and a spectacular glare.

"TEAM HORIO MEETING ABORT! ABORT! HOSTILE TEAM CAPTAIN APPROACHING!" Horio scrambled to his feet, ending up with several leaves in his hair.

"H-hi, Captain Tezuka…" Mizuno tried not to cower behind his teammates when he met his captain's stony glare.

Once the terrifying gaze shifted to Kachirou, he bowed his head in penitence. "We're sorry, Captain…" _Please tell me you didn't hear what we were talking about. It was supposed to be a surprise._

The three first-years stood together in silence, awaiting their punishment.

"Ten laps," stated the Captain.

Horio sighed loudly in relief.

"From here to Fudomine and back," finished the Captain.

They remained motionless, faces blank with shock.

_We're done for._

**-mm-**

_Notes: Yes, this is a day late, along with the previous one. I spent pretty much all of Sunday reading _World Trigger _to celebrate my birthday... Sorry, not sorry._

_I have no idea how far it actually is between Seigaku and Fudomine, but I thought it sounded like a suitable punishment. Also, I have a really bad sense of distance, so I'm not completely sure how much ten meters is XD_

_This series is fun! Probably because I don't include dark, angsty scenes, the way I do for the other ones._

_Thank you for reading! Next up is Hirakoba Rin (who is also going to be a day late)._


	10. March 3 - Hirakoba Rin

**March 3 - Hirakoba Rin**

Hirakoba Rin's mother loved him very much.

She didn't know how he could ever doubt that. She loved his tenacious personality, his unyielding devotion to his sport. She loved how he threw his passion and focus into perfecting his craft, even if it meant that he often came home after the sun was gone and his dinner was cold. He was a determined, hardworking person, and she couldn't be prouder of him for it.

She loved his strong, athletic figure, sculpted by his years of discipline for a single purpose: to shine on the tennis courts. And so he shined, brighter than his brutish peers—maybe she didn't know the names of any shots or serves, but she could recognize her son's skill in a heartbeat. She loved to watch him play. She loved to watch him win. She loved to turn to the tittering gaggle of mothers in the stands and tell them, "You see that strapping young lad over there? He's my son!"

She loved their envious facial expressions when she said that.

But most of all, she loved his beautiful hair. She never let him cut it—better to let it reach its full glory—and she loved to comb it and twist it into elaborate braids. She could give him graceful waterfall braids, or sophisticated high ponytails, or simple pigtails, and her little Rin would wear everything flawlessly, like an old-fashioned drama character, until he unraveled all her work before leaving for school… just to receive the same treatment the next morning. She did so love giving him an elaborate bun with chopsticks.

Of course, her little Rin now stood a full head taller than she did. That didn't mean that she wouldn't cut him down to size and give him pretty pigtails when he needed it.

She loved Rin very much, and she would keep telling him so until he got it into his stubborn little head.

"Rin, stop squirming. I don't know how you ever thought that bleached hair would make you look _cool_, but I refuse to have a son who runs around looking like a delinquent! I will wash out your hair and restore its beautiful natural color even if it takes all day!" She kneaded his hair roughly to punctuate her point.

"Mom! It's not going to wash out! And I wasn't going to leave it blond, anyway! I was going for a cool ice blue, to offset my teammates' hair," Rin insisted into the sink. He felt his head get shoved further into the sink in response to his efforts.

"How could your team think that dyed hair would make you all look better? Rin, if you want to stand out, don't copy the other regulars on your team! You look better with dark hair anyways. Don't worry, honey, I'll get it out." His mother reached for the soap again, slathering on another layer of bubbles.

"Mom, I told you, it's not going to wash out! Just let me use the blue dye on my hair, otherwise I'll just be blond." Rin attempted to lift his head to point out where the dye was, but his mother's hands held it firmly in place.

"Oh, that inky blue stuff that was in your backpack? There was an _accident _with the container, Rin. I'm afraid you won't be able to use it," his mother stated sweetly.

Rin blanched. His skin tone now matched his bleached hair. "But I bought that dye with my own money!"

"And you'll have to wash it out of your uniform with your own two hands."

Rin suddenly stilled and stopped struggling.

His mother patted his head with a soap-slathered hand.

Sooner or later, her son would learn.

**-mm-**

_Notes: I don't really have an excuse for the lateness this time, but... I had fun. Originally, his mother was not going to be the star of the entire scene, but clearly she has taken over. XD For a moment there, I was worried she would start sounding like Gou from _Free!_._

_Hooray for emasculating Hirakoba, I guess. Hair buns with chopsticks are fun though._

_Thank you for reading! Next up is Yukimura Seiichi._


	11. March 5 - Yukimura Seiichi

**March 5 - Yukimura Seiichi**

Beneath a deceptively calm dawn, the Rikkaidai boys' tennis team stood at the tennis courts and eyed each other nervously.

Or Kuwahara, at least, eyed his teammates nervously in the tenuous morning light. The third-years stood in a silent row, with him in the middle, turning from side to side to gauge his teammates' expressions. In this moment of palpable tension, how did they react?

Yanagi met his gaze and blinked placidly, apparently not worried in the least. Yagyuu, likewise, did not look concerned, and merely shifted his glasses higher on his nose. To his left, Marui and Niou were unusually solemn, to Kuwahara's surprise. Then Niou elbowed Marui in the gut, and Marui barely stifled a yelp before responding in kind, and their unspoken truce devolved into a silent contest of arm strength and elbow-pointiness.

The vice-captain's glare put a swift end to that little spat.

Rushed footsteps came from the entrance to the courts, and the team turned towards the latecomer hopefully, searching for a small figure with a yellow jacket billowing in the breeze behind it. They looked for the navy blue hair, the sweat-drenched headband…

They found a dark head of seaweed hair instead.

"Good morning! Sorry I'm late; my sister drives like an eighty-year-old granny or something, but at least I didn't take the bus—hey, where's Captain?"

Kuwahara immediately shushed him. "Akaya, your lateness is unacceptable for a Rikkaidai regular. Expect firm punishment once Captain gets here."

Kirihara gave his upperclassmen a baffled look. "Captain isn't here? Why not?"

Marui snorted. "We know about as much as you do, Akaya, which is absolutely nothing. Zip. Zilch. Even the data master has no idea."

"We don't know where Captain is? No one's seen him? He hasn't contacted anyone? Is he okay? _Did he have a relapse?_" Kirihara glanced between the others, waiting for someone to answer his increasingly frantic questions.

"Kirihara-kun, we don't know." Yagyuu spoke up. "For the time being, it's best to stop jumping to conclusions and panicking." He gave his vice-captain a pointed look.

Sanada, for his part, just clenched his racket tighter.

Yanagi suddenly coughed loudly, startling the rest of the regulars. He ignored their questioning looks. "Seiichi is coming," he pointed out blandly, nodding towards the far end of the courts.

The familiar blue head was approaching rapidly, accompanied by an unfamiliar brunette. He did not notice their concerned looks, or perhaps he ignored them.

"I apologize for my lateness, everyone. I will run laps later to make up for it—really, I will." Yukimura waved off Sanada's objections. "I'll be fine. Anyway, Muromachi-san here and I have a proposition!"

"Y-yes, but it was Yukimura-kun's suggestion," disagreed the girl.

_Why does she look so uncomfortable?_ wondered Kuwahara to himself. _We're not hulking tennis monsters like the high school students… I don't think we'd intimidate her._

"Well, it was my idea, but the Rikkai Beautification Committee will make it a reality." Yukimura beamed.

_Beautification? _The members of the team gave their captain identical bemused expressions.

"The fact of the matter is," continued Yukimura, "these bare clay courts are so _plain_ and _uninspiring_ for our adolescent minds. In the interest of promoting fun for everyone, I proposed that we spruce up the surroundings a bit. The courts really need some softer colors to offset that obnoxious shade of maroon, right?"

Sanada's eyebrow twitched, but he said nothing. His teammates followed his lead.

Muromachi-san gave a forced smile.

"So, to improve the visual effect of our courts, I thought we should add some decoration. Let's cover the grounds in flowers!" Yukimura gestured towards the entrance he had come from. "We can use everything. Lilies, irises, peonies, hyacinths, daffodils…"

Muromachi-san sensed a growing aura of horror in the atmosphere. "Uh, Yukimura-kun…" she started.

Seven sets of hopeful eyes stared at her, willing her to put a stop to the debacle before it could begin.

"Irises won't do well in that kind of lighting. Maybe we could try something else… entirely…" she finished.

"Oh, then we can just use amaryllis instead. Problem solved!" Yukimura beamed once again.

Marui and Kirihara deflated in defeat. They'd be resigned to the flowers after all.

_It was a valiant effort, Muromachi-san_. Kuwahara commended her attempt.

"Seiichi. If we had flowers…" Sanada hid a grimace and forged on. "The first-years' terrible aim would probably destroy them. You know we've been trying to teach that powerful serve. What do you think will happen if one Tornado lands in a flower bed, let alone twenty?"

"I agree," Yanagi immediately concurred. "While we appreciate your efforts to enrich the… visual experience of our courts, perhaps heaps of flowers would not be the best way to go about it."

"Good point," Yukimura admitted. "I'll have to rethink this."

Their teammates breathed a sigh of relief. They were saved!

"Aha!" Yukimura's face suddenly lit up in inspiration.

"…What?" Muromachi-san ventured to ask.

"Let's spray-paint neon flowers on the fence instead!"

**-mm-**

_Notes: I feel like this scene took forever to actually reach its point... but maybe that's because all the previous ones were so short XD I'm still thinking of editing this in the future, though._

_Also, I think the line about "promoting fun" was inspired by Lucathia Rykatu's oneshot "Welcome to Room 201"._

_I don't actually know about flowers. I have no idea what kind of lighting an iris needs, which is really sad, because there are a bunch of them in my front yard._

_Thank you for reading! Next up is Watanabe Osamu, or, as he is listed in my calendar, Osamu-chan._


End file.
